LOUISVILLE, Ky. — More than 17% of Americans 12 or older have had a substance use disorder, the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration said.  

In Kentucky, Seven Counties Services helps thousands of people a year overcome addiction, including Damon Mason, now a licensed barber. 

Clippers and responsibility are essential to being a barber, Mason said. 

“I wasn’t very reliable, so I stopped cutting hair,” he said.

That’s because Mason said his addiction to alcohol and cocaine took over his life.

“It looked very dark; it looked very dark,” he said.

Mason said he tried to sober up but struggled going in and out of recovery.

“I wasn't able to stop, so I went through the whole spiral of trying to figure out what was going on with me,” he said.

His addiction started when he was 23 years old and lasted for about 25 years, when he said he hit rock bottom.

“I didn't have any place," Mason said. "I was homeless, had no change of clothes. All my friends had really, like, abandoned me." 

That’s when he said he was making his last attempt to get clean. He walked into Seven Counties Services in Louisville in 2021 with nothing but the clothes on his back and three cigarettes.

“Damon comes in like most of our folks, which is stripped of a lot of resources … also stripped of a lot of dignity,” said Derek Priester, vice president of Seven Counties Services.

Seven Counties Services evaluated Mason and determined he needed residential care, which offers group and individual therapy, in addition to mental and physical health treatments.

“If we see that this person, if this path continues, will likely result in an overdose, hospitalization, death, any of those types of things, it's more likely they will need a residential level of care of some type,” Priester said.

Flash forward to Dec. 2024 and Mason, 54, will be four years sober in March.

Mason is now a licensed barber during the day and cuts hair at Wags Barbershop & Hair Salon on West Broadway in Louisville. He also works for General Electric at night. 

“Most of my clients are people in recovery … so I can kind of carry the message of recovery while I get the opportunity to cut people's hair," Mason said. "It's an amazing thing." 

He said one day, he hopes to work in the field of recovery to share his story of trial and error. 

Priester said in 2023, the addiction services division at Seven Counties Services served about 4,000 people. 

Seven Counties Services accepts walk-ins at its Preston Street location Monday through Thursday 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Fridays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.